Check out this thread to learn tips and tricks about RC Boats from those with experience. Use it as a resource and be sure to share your knowledge with the group.

Share Your Best Tips with New Boat Captains

This time of year we start seeing an influx of newcomers to the hobby visiting RCGroups. Some are finding out about this great hobby for the first time and wanting to soak up as much information as they can before starting their journey. For most of us, we've been doing this for years or decades and as a community, the knowledge we all have is an outstanding resource that should be shared.

I wanted to create a series of these articles for various RC categories so no matter if you got a new airplane, heli, drone, truck or boat, you'll have easy access to some of the best tips and tricks to help you be successful and enjoy your chosen hobby. This article is for RC Boats, so please hit the reply button below and share your favorite marine related tips and tricks.

I'll get us started with a cool resource you might not be familiar with. While it is possible to learn to drive and use your boat all by yourself, you are going to have a better chance with the help of an experienced captain. Plus meeting and running boats with others who share the same passion as you is way more fun than doing it alone. Use the RCGroups Places Page to locate and find Boat Clubs near you and reach out for help. You'll be glad you did.

Bring a fish pole with you..you can cast over the boat and pull it back to shore slowly...Best way is boat with other boaters..If the boat is gas bring a fire extinguisher...if the boat is sail bring a sandwich and beverage...

As a noobie interested in boats, why is it that you wouldn't swim out?

Not to mention that some areas have mean critters that can attack you as well. example is alligators , snakes, leaches, and there can be plant growth
you could get tangled in. Not worth taking the chance in my book. A fishing pole or retrieval boat is a lot cheaper than a trip to the hospital or death.

Have some kind of retrieval boat or device with you....especially first few times out with a new boat.

If the retrieval boat can carry a full size person, that person should be wearing an approved PFD. The boat should have a hard hull - wood, aluminum, fiberglass, plastic. Don't use an air mattress or cheap blow up raft.

A few years ago a couple of guys were running nitro powered go-fasts on a pond and one of them stalled. The driver of the stalled boat was paddling out on an inflatable air mattress, when the other boat ran into the air mattress ripping it open. The man on the air mattress couldn't swim and wasn't wearing a PFD, he drowned.

Not to mention that some areas have mean critters that can attack you as well. example is alligators , snakes, leaches, and there can be plant growth
you could get tangled in. Not worth taking the chance in my book. A fishing pole or retrieval boat is a lot cheaper than a trip to the hospital or death.

Not to mention some pond water is extremely nasty and you can get sick from swimming in it.